Health Insurance Gets a few Additions
Traditionally, Indian healthcare has had an out-of-pocket type of expenditure scenario. With the millennials proactively seeking insurances for their health and other assets, the numbers have begun to rise. Before the pandemic hit us, most health insurances covered the typical illnesses and had some top-ups that were meant to cover illnesses like cancer. Even with companies like Practo that allowed online consults and tele-consults, these were not covered by personal or corporate insurance plans.
However, the latest from IRDAI(The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India) is revolutionary as it has instructed insurers to cover telemedicine under their health insurance policies starting October 2020. The main reason for this shift is because more and more people today are preferring to get a teleconsultation with their doctors rather than making in-person visits to reduce their risk of contracting the virus. With hospitals offering nursing services at patient’s home, telemedicine is only becoming more and more relevant in today’s times. Telemedicine is relatively cheaper, reduces travelling time, waiting time at the doctor’s office and reduces the risk of contagion– all of which motivates individuals and families to buy health insurance policies, especially with the uncertainty of the pandemic looming over us.
A welcome change by the IRDAI and we can only hope for India’s shift to an insurance-based model from its out-of cash health expenditure model.